One of the most popular electives students take at Lincoln-Way is a world language elective. Some students take a world language class for fun, and some students take a world language class to earn the Seal of Biliteracy on their diploma. Lincoln-Way offers Spanish, German, French, and Mandarin Chinese. Each class ranges from levels 1 to 4, but Spanish is the only class that has 5 levels because Spanish is also taught in junior high. But how would students respond if a new world language class could be taught?
There are many languages spoken in the world, and everyone has his or her own preference of which language to learn. Adding a new language to the world language department would attract more students. If a new language could be added, which one should it be? I took a survey of 35 students not enrolled in a world language class and asked them which language they would like to see be added to the world language department. Out of those 35 students, 24 chose Japanese, 6 chose Portuguese, and 5 chose Russian.
The reason Japanese was the most popular choice is because many people are fans of anime, and all anime is in Japanese unless they also include versions in English. Some people prefer to watch the Japanese version because the acting is better, but they do not like reading the subtitles. Therefore, learning Japanese would be helpful so they can enjoy watching the action in the show instead of focusing on reading the subtitles.
Though it is unlikely Lincoln-Way will add a new language to the world language department, it would be nice to have a new language added to the list. However, there are still great languages being taught, so try learning one.